Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare
The Infernal Devices #3
Release Date: March 19, 2013
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Source: Bought
Rating: 2 out of 5/Troll

Tessa Gray should be happy - aren't all brides happy?
Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute.

A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her.

Lmao, this book though. I should point out that I only read this book because SOMEONE harassed me into it. Not mentioning any names BUT THEY KNOW WHO THEY ARE *stares accusingly*

Clockwork Princess begins with Jem and Tessa engaged and ready to be married, Will being very sad about it and that Mortmain guy still hovering around in the background as the ~obligatory antagonist~. Cecily, Will's sister, is now one of the main characters (and incidentally one of the few I liked) and the mystery of who or what Tessa is is solved. At least I think it is. Still not sure I understood it tbh, not that I tried very hard. Obviously the love triangle is resolved, in an ~entirely unique~ way.

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
The Infernal Devices #2
Release Date: December 6, 2011
Publisher: Walker Books
Source: Bought
Rating: Bland

The situation at the London Institute has never been more precarious. With Mortmain and his clockwork army still threatening, the Council wants to strip Charlotte of her power and hand the running of the Enclave over to the unscrupulous and power-hungry Benedict Lightwood.

In the hope of saving Charlotte and the Institute, Will, Jem, and Tessa set out to unravel the secrets of Mortmain’s past—and discover unsettling Shadowhunter connections that hold the key not only to the enemy’s motivations, but also to the secret of Tessa’s identity. Tessa, already caught between the affections of Will and Jem, finds herself with another choice to make when she learns how the Shadowhunters helped make her a “monster.” Will she turn from them to her brother, Nate, who has been begging her to join him at Mortmain’s side? Where will her loyalties—and love—lie? Tessa alone can choose to save the Shadowhunters of London…or end them forever. - Goodreads

Clockwork Prince picks up just after Clockwork Angel ends. Charlotte is now struggling to stay as the head of the London Institute, Mortmain is still on the loose and the Shadowhunters aren’t sure what to do.

I absolutely loved the first book in the Infernal Devices trilogy, but unfortunately I didn’t enjoy Clockwork Prince. This book was very disappointing for me, as I am a fan of most of Clare’s other novels and I was expecting great things.

There is very little action in this novel which caused the plot to drag on. I was tempted many a time to skip pages just to see if it picked up, but of course I couldn’t do that because I hate spoilers! In addition to the lack of exciting scenes, the romance between Tessa, Will and Jem totally takes over this novel. There was far too much focus on the love triangle, and to be honest I thought that Clockwork Prince felt like a spin off or a fan fiction because of this.

Tessa, whom I absolutely adored in Clockwork Angel for her strong personality, made me want to tear my eyes out. I am so annoyed with her! I hate what she’s doing to Jem and Will, and she also comes across as a complete idiot at times. Tessa has turned into one of those weak, ignorant, indecisive female protagonists that I so despise.

We learnt a fair bit about Will and his backstory in this book, which I definitely enjoyed. I would have preferred it if it had played out differently, but of course I can’t go into detail on that due to spoilers!

Jem didn’t really have a huge storyline in Clockwork Prince other than to please Tessa. This was a huge let down, because I loved Jem’s character in the first book and I wanted him to do more than blend in with the wall.

In addition to Will’s development, we also see a lot of other characters in this book. We learn lots about various members of the Lightwood family, the Fairchild family, Mortmain and others. I enjoyed this, but in order for these side plots to be included the action was toned down. I would have preferred to have had more action over the miniature side plots.

Throughout the novel, the characters came out with references to- and quotations of what is now classic literature and poetry, which felt almost humorously out of place within the story or dialogue.

I’m sorry to say this, but I also thought that Clare’s writing style was very awkward to me. There were lots of awkward – I’m totally overusing this word, sorry! – sentences in terms of structure, with an excessive use of commas at times which was unnecessary and choppy. The dialogue in this book was also bland, and at many points in the story I wasn’t able to tell if a character was talking or if it was part of the paragraph.

Overall, I was extremely disappointed with Clockwork Prince. I think I am going to have to give up on Cassandra Clare’s books, as this is the second in a row that I haven’t enjoyed. I’m not sure if the fact that so many of her books being written and published in a short space of time is affecting the writing, but I don’t like this new style. As a result, I can’t recommend this novel, and I will not be reading Clockwork Princess.

I hope I managed to convey my thoughts and feelings on this book well enough, it was an extremely difficult review to write.

Book Review: Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
The Infernal Devices #2
Release Date: August 31st, 2010
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Rating: Essential
Recommended? Yes!
Buy the Book: Amazon UK | Amazon US

Magic is dangerous--but love is more dangerous still.

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep the order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What's more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by--and torn between--two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length... everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world... and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all. - Goodreads Page

I am a huge fan of Cassandra Clare's previous series - The Mortal Instruments - and I have to say that, to start with, I was a little worried about Clockwork Angel because I had a feeling that the storyline and the characters were going to be repeats of those in TMI. However, being the huge fan that I am, I couldn't wait to start CA, despite my reservations. I was very pleased to find that I loved Clockwork Angel! I thought it was really good.

Cassandra Clare captured the feeling of Victorian London - where the novel is set - extremely well, right down to the minor dialogue and even certain buildings! The attention to detail was certainly impressive and that meant that the description was as excellent as always. I found that yet again I could slip right into Clare's world and had a lot of trouble putting the book down. I loved how there was a good mixture of different magical and mythical beings, such as shapeshifters, vampires, warlocks and... robots?!

I thought that Clare could have done a slightly better job in making this book/series more original and stand out more than her other one, because to begin with a lot of the characters were very similar to the ones in TMI. I think after a few chapters the characters really started to come into their own. I know a lot of people found Jace (from TMI) and Will (ID) to be the same person (Cassandra Clare seems to have a thing for hot witty teenage boys), however I have to disagree. There are certainly similarities in the characters, both have a certain charm to them and both have witty comebacks and attitudes. But for those who have read both books, Will is quite obviously cruel and he pushes people away. He also seems to be a compulsive liar. Jace, on the other hand, is kind and he loves his family and friends and would do anything for them. Plus, he doesn't lie.

Tessa was a lot like Clary, however she seemed more mature which is probably appropriate for a young adult of the Victorian era.

Overall, this book is excellent and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys the young adult and fantasy genres. You can even read this book without reading Clare's previous works, as it stands as an individual novel!